Corrugated Resonance

I walked along the utility yard fence until the chain-link ended at a heavy corrugated steel barrier. Near the curb lay an unbent metal soda bottle cap, turned upside down. I picked it up, feeling its fluted crimps under my thumbs. Standing close to the metal wall, I held the cap against one of the vertical steel ridges and pulled it downward in a slow, firm stroke. The ridged edge rasped sharply against the painted enamel, setting off a deep, vibrating drone inside the hollow sheet. I pressed my palm flat beside the score line, letting the warm industrial hum buzz into my knuckles.